


Halloween Thieves

by Lanihaluki



Category: Story Thieves Series - James Riley
Genre: Halloween, charm doesn’t trust candy, kids go trick or treating, owen LOVES halloween
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2020-05-30
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:14:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24461122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lanihaluki/pseuds/Lanihaluki
Summary: A one-shot I made of the story thieves characters during Halloween!
Relationships: Bethany Sanderson & Orion Sanderson, Gwen/Bethany Sanderson, Kiel Gnomenfoot/Bethany Sanderson, Kiel Gnomenfoot/Gwen/Bethany Sanderson, Owen Conners & Bethany Sanderson, Owen Conners & Kiel Gnomenfoot, Owen Conners/Charm Mentum, Owen Conners/Kara Dox
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	Halloween Thieves

It was Halloween night, and Bethany was getting more frustrated by the second.

"Okay, Owen. _No_. There's no way we're going trick or treating tonight!" She stubbornly stayed seated in her chair, staring at the clearly-excited boy across from her.

Unlike usual afternoons, which they spent in the library, they were at Bethany's house after a long day spent at school. The entire day had been packed with kids who went all out with the Halloween spirit, all wearing costumes that were either borderline lazy or very creative. Bethany appreciated Halloween, and even enjoyed it, but she wasn't the type of person who went trick or treating or dressed up every year. When she was younger she used to dress up during school, but lately she had stopped.

Owen was practically bouncing up and down on his feet in front of her, too excited to properly sit on the couch like a normal person. Unlike her, who wasn't dressed in a costume, he was fully garbed in a Spider-Man outfit that covered his entire face. His obsession with superhero comics had clearly shone through, especially now that it was Halloween.

"Come on!" He huffed. "Why not? It's the only night of the year to get free candy, and —"

"Don't even say it."

"And I have an extra costume at my house from last year!" he finished.

Bethany raised her eyebrows. "What extra costume? That Kiel Gnomenfoot replica that you got from eBay?"

"What?" He laughed, a bit awkwardly. "Uh, no! I definitely don't have that sitting in my room, locked away in a ziplock bag in my closet . . ."

She rolled her eyes, smiling a little. "Okay, well I'm all for free candy, but my dad said he'd watch Halloween movies with me tonight! I don't want to pass that opportunity up. I haven't done those kinds of things with him before. Not in a long time, anyway."

"You could go trick or treating with me and watch a movie after," Owen offered. "It's a win-win situation, and we'll both be happy!"

"Fine, but I haven't gone trick or treating in ages, Owen," she said. "Not since I was four. I don't even remember how to do it."

"That's cool! Spider-Man here can show you how to do it. All you need to do is ring some doorbells, grab candy, and run away to the next house. It's super fun. I've done it with um, well, my mom every year." He cringed a little bit. "But now that you and the rest of our friends are going with us, I promise you'll have a great time. You'll have more candy than you can eat."

"I think if I wanted that much candy, I could easily get some from Charlie and The Chocolate Factory," Bethany said, giving him a pointed look.

"That's not real candy, though. Well, it is, but it's fictional candy," Owen said, fidgeting with the tight sleeve on his costume. "And I promise you that eating a bunch of candy, especially on Halloween, feels amazing. Plus, the supply lasts for a week."

"I thought that most people keep theirs for a month."

He laughed. "Yeah, um . . . about that. I eat mine in a week . . ."

Bethany scrunched her eyebrows, feeling mildly horrified for his poor stomach. She loved candy too, but she couldn't eat that much in that short amount of time. "How much candy do you usually get?"

"You don't wanna know."

She slapped her hands on either side of the couch below her, using her momentum to push herself to her feet. She stepped away from him, then closed her eyes, her mind racing with new possibilities of a costume. Now that she was half-fictional again, shapeshifting came a lot easier. She wasn't overwhelmed with thoughts, and her imagination was in perfect working condition. When she finally picked out the right idea, she imagined herself as that thing, warping her body into its image.

"Whoa! Now you make my costume seem lame," she heard Owen say. Bethany opened her eyes, then walked over to the mirror to check herself out. She still had a humanly form, but now her clothing was white, practically flowing everywhere she walked. Her body and face seemed a bit transparent, too. It wasn't too noticeable unless she looked closely, which was a good sign. Lastly, her skin and hair had a white tint to it, and it seemed to glow. All in all, she looked really cool.

She glanced back at Owen, who was standing behind her. Even with his mask still on, she could tell his mouth was hanging open. "What?" she teased. "Jealous of my costume?"

"A little bit, actually. You didn't tell me you could look like that! You look exactly like a real life ghost!" He put his hands up, rubbing them together. "My turn! Do me!"

"No way. I can't shape shift other people. And you wanted to be Spider-Man, remember?" Bethany twirled around, just so she could rub it in further. "See? This is much better than that Kiel Gnomenfoot costume in your room. It's probably wrinkled."

"It's not!" he protested. "It's in a great condition. And by the way, I'm telling Kiel you said that."

"If you tell him that, he'll just take it as a compliment," she pointed out.

Owen sighed. "That's true." He picked up his phone from it's spot on the couch and checked it, flipping through the screen. When he was done, he looked back up at her. "Ready to go to the library? Our friends probably need costumes, too."

Bethany grinned. "I think they already have them."

"Huh?" he asked, cocking his head to the side. "What's that supposed to mean?!"

She grabbed his hand, pulling him out the door and into the direction of the library. "You'll see."

~

"Oh, I love it!" Gwen exclaimed, staring her up and down with an appreciative smile. "Your costume looks great."

"Thanks, but it isn't a costume," Bethany said. "I used my shapeshifting powers that Charm gave me."

"Costume or not, it looks really cool. You look like a real ghost!" Gwen said, then glanced over at Owen, who was busy putting some extra books away. She shifted in her seat. "When are the others coming?"

Bethany shook her head, throwing a look at the sliding doors at the front of the library. "I'm not sure. There are so many portals now that lead from the fictional world to here, so it's not like I need to jump into each book and grab them all. They should be here any minute."

"I hope all of them can come," Gwen said, readjusting her shirt. After having many lively discussions and comic book binge reads, she had discovered her new obsession with SpiderGwen. And since Owen was going as Spider-Man, she figured the perfect opportunity was to go as SpiderGwen.

Just as she finished her sentence, she heard two voices from the front of the building. One, a boy clothed in a purple and red outfit, complete with a Twilight star in the center and a purple cape that draped from his back. And the other, a girl who's pink hair stood out under the bright lights.

"Owen! Bethany!" Kara shouted, running over to them with an excited expression. Beside her, Orion sighed, then sped up to match her pace.

Owen stopped what he was doing, immediately breaking out into a grin. For now, his Spider-Man costume had been pulled down to reveal his face. He walked up to Kara, enveloping her into an embrace as the two of them beamed.

"You came!" he said, pulling away. "I thought you'd think it was just some lame holiday when I started ranting about trick or treating and pumpkin carving and scary movies."

"Hey, I'm here too!" Orion said, his arms crossed.

Kara shook her head. "Halloween sounds really cool, trust me. I've never heard of anything like it. And as long as I don't mess the world up with my time travel, I think it'll be a good night."

Bethany stood up from the table she'd been sitting at, and so did Gwen. "It'll be my first time trick or treating in years. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this whole thing."

"Where's the trick?" Orion asked, looking around the library suspiciously. He observed the four of them with a disdainful look. "There's crime fighting, isn't there? That's the trick. Great, now I washed my costume all for nothing."

Owen made a face. "First of all, gross. You don't wash your costume? That's bad hygiene, especially for a superhero. Second of all, there's no trick. It's just called that. Kids go up to houses and get free candy."

"Free candy? That's suspicious. I bet it's poisoned."

Gwen looked suddenly doubtful. "Is it? Would people be so horrible to poison the most delicious food in the world?"

"Of course not," Bethany assured her. "It's a holiday. They wouldn't poison it, especially since mostly little kids are eating it."

"Oh, okay. Good."

"Yeah," Owen added. "It's not bad for you in any way! It's meant for enjoyment. The whole night is. That's why people dress up in costumes, too." His eyes traveled to Kara. "Great costume, by the way. What are you dressed as?"

"This?" Kara looked down at herself. She was wearing a classic 50s outfit, which appeared just to be a scarf, sunglasses, a long pink skirt, and a white and black polka dot shirt. "Oh, I . . . found it."

"Where?" Bethany asked, suddenly curious. She hadn't taken any of her fictional friends to the mall, after all. She'd only encouraged them to find their own costumes.

Kara smiled awkwardly. "In the 50s."

"You time traveled to the 50s?" Owen shouted. "Okay, that might be the coolest thing ever. Did you steal that?"

She waved him off. "I'm a former time prisoner. I don't steal, I'm just borrowing. I'll give it back later. That's not relevant, though. Can anyone guess who's clothing this is?"

They all just stared at her. She scrunched her eyebrows, looking slightly hurt. "No? Anyone?"

"No one knows," Orion confirmed.

"Never mind." She sighed.

"Tell us!" Bethany urged. "What, is it someone famous? Like Grace Kelly?"

"Who's Grace Kelly?" Gwen piped up.

"I don't know who that is, but I'm gonna say no," Kara said. "Any more guesses?"

"Uh . . . did you get it from . . . my grandma's house?" Owen asked.

"Really? I don't even know who your grandma is."

He blushed. "Okay, well, clearly none of us know. Can we go trick or treating now? It's gonna be dark out in an hour, and I want to hit all the houses before the other kids do."

"This isn't a competition, is it?" Bethany said with a grin.

"What? No! I just want candy," Owen said, apparently taking her words seriously. Then he looked at her, and he rolled his eyes. She raised her eyebrows in response, but looked away at her other friends. "What about Kiel and Charm? We should wait for them first."

"Yeah," Gwen agreed, glancing at the door. "I would feel really bad if we ditched them."

"I say we forget about them and go trick or treating. They're taking too long," Orion said, starting to walk towards the entrance of the library. "I could be fighting crime right now."

"Stop complaining," Bethany told him. "There's hardly any crime here, at least not until Kiel shows up. We have to wait for Kiel and Charm. They said they'd be here."

"I don't know," Kara said, slowly moving to follow Orion. "They do seem late. It's unusual for Charm to be late. She's normally the one who's here first."

"I'm sure they have a good reason for it," Owen said, checking the clock anxiously. He didn't move, but Bethany could tell that he wanted nothing more than to go outside and start trick or treating. This was pretty much his favorite holiday. He'd been talking nonstop about this night for months.

"I'll check to see when they come," Kara said, pulling up her sleeve to reveal a time watch. She pressed in a few numbers, then hit the button. She instantly zapped out of sight, then reappeared a few seconds later. "I just traveled a few minutes ahead. They'll be here in a minute."

They all turned toward the door, watching and waiting. Just like Kara had said, Bethany spotted two dark forms walk from the outside and step into the light. She couldn't help the smile that sprang to her face.

"It's Kiel's fault that we're late," Charm grunted. Upon the persuasion of Owen, she had finally given in and decided to dress up as Cyborg from Teen Titans. Bethany could tell she had made some effort to outline her robot parts, which made her look really cool.

"I'm not sorry," Kiel said quickly, his hands outstretched. He wasn't even wearing a costume, just his normal outfit . . . which, probably could've been considered a costume anyway. "I have the greatest news —"

"Greatest is an overstatement."

"What is it?" Owen asked, his face alight with excitement. "Did you find an all-powerful machine that lets me switch bodies with you for a day?"

"That's kind of weird, especially for Owen," Bethany whispered to Kara, who nodded with a small smile.

"You'll see," Kiel said with a wink. "We found this cool costume contest down the street. And if I win, which I definitely will, I get a prize!"

~

"This is so exciting! Earth traditions are the greatest, aren't they?" Gwen gushed as the group walked to the outdoor costume contest that sat a few blocks down the street.

"They are!" Owen said. His mask was now covering his face again. "You have no idea how many years I've been waiting to dress up as Spider-Man for Halloween. You have no idea."

"Oh, boy," Charm muttered under her breath from beside Bethany, her eyes trained on the darkening road ahead.

"What if I win the costume contest?" Owen continued. "I probably won't, but what if I do? That would be really cool."

"I think you'll win," Kara said, her shoulder brushing against Owen's as they walked. "The movie you showed me was awesome."

"You showed her the movie?" Bethany asked, turning towards her best friend. "Which one?"

He scratched the back of his neck. "All of them?"

"Seriously?"

"She needed to get aquatinted with our culture! Plus, I couldn't choose. They're all equally great superhero movies!"

"I think Doc Twilight and me are the only great superheroes," Orion said from the left of Bethany.

"Oh, there's no way you just said that —" Bethany began, but stopped as she caught sight of the costume contest. Now that they were close up, she could see it was huge. There was a crowd of maybe a hundred people, all surrounding an empty stage.

"Hey, nice Kiel Gnomenfoot costume!" a kid said as they approached.

Kiel grinned. "Thanks. Don't I look great?"

Bethany walked ahead of the others, who had all momentarily stopped walking. She lightly hit him in the arm, then turned to the kid. "That's not a costume."

The kid gave her a weird look, but slowly nodded and walked away. Kiel gave her a look. "Despite the fact that I hate the word fictional, I'm technically a fictional character, so I have the right to wear whatever I want. This is, in a way, my costume. There's nothing more perfect to wear for Halloween than this —"

She slapped him on the arm again. He pushed her hand away. "Beth! Stop with the hitting."

"Sorry." She sighed. "Okay, I just don't want people to get the wrong idea. They might think you're actually the real Kiel Gnomenfoot, and then we'd have a problem."

"They won't. Everyone else is dressed up as someone." Kiel gestured at the other various people surrounding them, all wearing costumes. "I even see some other people dressed up as me, but I doubt they'll win. I have the best-looking costume out of anyone here."

Bethany laughed. "No way. I think I do. You're just wearing a black cape and black clothes."

He raised an eyebrow. "And you think you look better, book-girl?"

"Maybe. I shape-shifted into a ghost."

Kiel's eyes trailed up and down her ghostly body, taking in her outfit. "That is pretty cool. Did I ever tell you how amazing your powers are? If I didn't look cooler, I might be jealous."

Bethany started to blush, but didn't have enough time to come up with a reply.

"He's jealous," Charm said loudly from behind them. "He just doesn't want to admit it."

"I'm not jealous," Kiel replied, instantly turning to face her.

Bethany snorted, then reached up to pat his shoulder. "Yeah. Okay, magic-boy."

"How exactly does this costume contest work?" Kara asked as she, Owen, Orion, and Gwen caught up with the other three. She was looking in bewilderment at the huge crowd that lay before them, almost seeming to be in shock of it all.

"Yeah, how does it work?" Gwen asked, looking just as confused considering she'd never been to an Earth outing like this.

"I've never actually participated, but I'd like to say I'm kind of a master at the rules," Owen said, perking up. "It's voluntary, so whoever wants to participate can participate. The participants go up on stage and the people get to decide who has the best costume."

"Are you kids participating in the costume contest this evening?" a woman who was dressed as a witch asked, approaching their small group.

Bethany shook her head. "Oh, no. Not me. But my friend wants to."

"Make that two friends," Owen said, moving to stand beside Kiel, who smiled in surprise. "As long as we make this quick. I want to get trick or treating as soon as possible."

The woman nodded with a smile, then started walking towards another group of kids.

"It'll be ten minutes, tops," Bethany said, looking at Owen. She knew how excited he was to go trick or treating. He'd been gushing about it all day. "Don't worry."

"I hope so," he replied, his voice slightly muffled from the costume.

"I think I'll participate, too," Gwen said, sliding up beside Kiel and Owen. "This seems fun!"

"This is lame," Orion said with a yawn. "What is this, a contest so people can judge what you're wearing?"

"Basically," Bethany said with a shrug. "But it seems cool. It's a Halloween thing."

"I'd love to do it, but seeing as people don't get what my costume is, I'll pass," Kara said, looking pointedly at Bethany, Owen, Orion, and Gwen. They all smiled sheepishly.

"So that's three who are participating," Owen said. He glanced at Orion, who immediately shook his head. "I'd rather watch."

"What about you?" Owen asked hesitantly, turning to Charm.

She firmly shook her head. "I'm with Kid Twilight over here. This seems lame."

He looked slightly hurt. "It's not! You dressed up as Cyborg, and you look awesome! People will love it."

Charm's eyes softened, and she sighed, her eyes flitting over to the stage. "I don't know. If this is a trick, I swear one of you is getting punched."

"I don't doubt it," Kiel muttered. "Been there, done that."

"You should participate," Gwen said to Charm. "I can tell you put a lot of detail into your costume. You look amazing."

"Yeah," Bethany said. "There's only a once in a lifetime chance to do this, unless you do it next year."

Charm looked at each of their expectant faces, then sighed again and held up a ray gun. "Fine. I'll do it. As long as I can shoot people if they annoy me —"

"Charm!" Kara said, her eyes widening.

Owen forced a laugh, looking nervously around at the other people nearby. He leaned forward, shoving Charm's ray gun down. "You brought your ray guns?"

"Of course," Charm said. "I bring them everywhere."

"I told her not to!" Kiel said, shaking his head with a small grin. "But she ignored me. She never listens to reason."

"You're saying that about me?" Charm demanded, stepping forward and grabbing him by the shirt. She shook him hard. "You're one to talk, Kiel Gnomenfoot! You don't listen to me, ever."

"Hey, guys, please break it up!" Gwen said, desperately trying to lighten the mood.

Bethany grabbed hold of Kiel, yanking him away from the half-robotic girl's clutches. "No fighting. We're here to have fun, and that's it."

"Exactly!" Owen said, throwing his hands up in exasperation. "Thank you, Bethany."

Kiel pulled out of Bethany's hold and fixed his wrinkled shirt. "Now that that's finished, when is this contest starting? Everyone is just standing around."

Everyone shrugged in response. A few minutes later, a man's voice over a loud speaker was heard over the roar of conversation. "People young and old who are participating in the costume contest, please come on stage!"

"That's you guys," Bethany said, looking in turn at Owen, Kiel, Gwen, and Charm. Charm was muttering a few choice words under her breath, clearly annoyed, while Owen, Kiel, and Gwen shared an excited look.

"I'm actually nervous!" Owen said, his head turning to the stage where people began moving towards. He turned back towards the group and looked at Bethany. "Bethany, If I win and become famous, I want to tell you 'I told you so'."

"Don't get too excited," she reminded him. "You might not even win."

"Don't tell him that!" Kiel said. "That'll only crush his spirits." Then he leaned in, close enough for only her to hear. "But we all know I'm going to win."

Bethany rolled her eyes, giving him a light shove in the direction of the stage. "You guys should get going."

Charm nodded, looking less pleased by the second. "Yeah. Let's get this over with." Without another word, she pushed past a group of people and into the crowd.

"Good luck!" Kara called.

"Thank you!" Gwen said with a smile, running after the half-robotic girl. Owen and Kiel followed closely behind.

"Think they'll win?" Orion asked, moving to stand in between Bethany and Kara.

Bethany shrugged. "Maybe. Probably not. Although I have to say, Charm's costume looks awesome. Owen looks great too, but I don't think he'll win."

The three kids watched as their friends joined the long line of contestants on stage. There were maybe forty people lined up, and Owen, Kiel, Charm, and Gwen were towards the end of the line. Once the willing participants were all on stage, a man carrying a microphone clattered onto the stage. "Hello, Halloween lovers! How's everyone tonight?"

A loud cheer erupted from the crowd. The man grinned, motioning for quiet. "I said, how's everyone tonight?"

"I think everyone heard him. How many times does he need to say that—" Kara began, but the crowd started jumping up and down, screaming or shouting for no necessary reason. The noise echoed through Bethany's ears, and she cringed.

"Good!" the man said. "Let's get started." He turned around to face the contestants, then walked down the line and looked at them in turn. "Well, well, well. We have some competition tonight. People really went all out!"

The man went up to the first person in line — a small boy dressed as Harry Potter — and pointed at him. "Everyone, cheer as loudly as you can if you think this young man is the winner!"

A few cheers rang out, but not many. The boy looked slightly dejected as the man went to the next person. It was a girl around Bethany's age, who was dressed as a fairy. He pointed to her. "What about this fairy? Yell if you think she's the winner!" Compared to the first boy, the girl received more applause and cheers from the crowd.

The man did the same process for each person in the long line of people, some getting more applauds than others. At last, he made it to where Owen, Kiel, Gwen, and Charm were standing. Owen was first. He was fidgeting with his hands, casting looks at Kiel — who was beside him — every few seconds.

"How about this Spider-Man over here?" the man questioned, his voice booming from the large speakers on either side of the stage. He pointed at Owen, and the crowd responded with many cheers. Bethany and Kara yelled with the crowd, trying to be as loud as possible. That seemed to contribute something, because the people surrounding them yelled too.

"Ooh — look what we have here! A Kiel Gnomenfoot! This is the second one of the night. What does the crowd say?"

The loud roar echoed from the hundreds of people, earning a grin and a wink from Kiel. He outstretched his hands and motioned to himself, which made the crowd get louder. Bethany rolled her eyes, biting back a smile as she watched him. He was loving the attention.

The attention was drawn away from Kiel and to Gwen, who was beside him. When the man signaled for the crowd to go wild, Bethany cupped her hands over her mouth and cheered as loudly as she could. Gwen didn't receive as much applause, but she still smiled brightly as if she'd won the lottery.

The last person in line was Charm. She'd been quiet the whole time, looking at everything with hardly any interest. When the man approached her and announced her costume, she straightened up into a confident manner. The amount of applause she received was more than Bethany had expected. The crowd exploded, slapping them palms against each other and roaring loudly enough to make Bethany's ears ring.

"I think we have a winner!" the man shouted into the microphone, pointing at a very surprised Charm. "Step forward to get your prize."

Charm was straight-faced as she slowly walked forward to stand beside the man. All eyes were on her. The man took a small slip from his pocket and handed it to her. "Here you go! A $2,000 dollar certificate!"

Bethany's mouth dropped open. Kara gasped. "How — how much is that?"

"It's a lot," Bethany muttered, barely able to focus. She couldn't believe Charm had won that much money, and she was a fictional character!

Everyone applauded once again as the contestants made their way off the stage. A few minutes later, Owen, Kiel, Gwen, and Charm joined them back on the grass.

"Congratulations," a man said, patting Charm on the shoulder as he passed.

"Uh, thanks . . ." Charm said, looking uncomfortable. She was clutching the certificate carefully, as if it were a fragile object.

"Yeah, you deserve it!" Gwen said, rubbing Charm briefly on the arm.

"I can't believe I didn't win," Kiel said, eyeing the certificate in Charm's hand.

"I can," Orion said dryly, earning a glare from the boy magician.

"That was so cool!" Owen exclaimed, gently touching the certificate. "Wow. I can't believe that just happened. Can any of you?"

"Nope." Kara shook her head, a smile forming on her face. "I'm really not surprised you won. Your costume is really cool, Charm."

"Stop with the compliments already!" Charm growled, sounding annoyed. "They make me feel sick."

Kara recoiled, looking at the ground. She looked slightly insulted. Taking note of the tension building up, Bethany forced a smile. "Um, we should go before this whole crowd leaves."

"Trick or treating!" Owen suddenly yelled, glancing over at the houses along the street. It was sunset already.

"Right!" Kara said, grabbing Owen's hand. She started dragging him towards the street, and the rest of their group trailed after her. "Where to first?"

Everyone looked to Owen for assistance, who pointed towards the closest neighborhood filled with houses. "There! Come on, I know where we can get the full sized candy bars."

Bethany and Kiel laughed. The group journeyed across the street and entering the neighborhood, where many kids were out and about. They walked up to the house closest to them, following behind a group of kids a few years younger than them. 

"What do we say?" Kara asked, watching the group of kids chatter to each other.

"All you say is 'trick or treat' when they open the door," Bethany said. "I haven't trick or treated since I was four, and even I know that."

"I still don't get how this isn't a trick," Orion commented.

"It's not. It should be fun."

"So then what?" Kiel asked. "What happens once they open the door?"

"They give you candy!" Owen said, then did a little dance with his legs as they neared the door. "Oh, I am ready for some candy. None of you have a single idea how great Halloween is, but you're about to find out."

They came to a stop behind the group of kids, who were knocking on the door. A moment later, the door swung open, revealing a middle-aged couple.

"Trick or treat!" the kids said simultaneously.

The woman smiled, grabbing a bowl of candy from it's spot on a table inside her house. "Aw, you kids look so cute! I love your costumes! Here, you can each choose one." She held the bowl out to them, and each child reached in, pulling out a small piece of candy and pocketing it into their bags. When they were done, they turned around and squeezed past the awaiting group.

"Hi!" the man said. "I really love your costumes. We've got a Spider-Man, a SpiderGwen, a robot, a ghost, a 50s chick, and another superhero." Orion flashed the man a dirty look, but he was busy staring at Kiel. "Huh. I don't believe I know what you are. Are you . . . a vampire?"

Kiel scowled. "What? A vampire?"

Bethany immediately began to laugh. "Oh, god. I can't breathe."

"No," Owen said, his tone sounding offended. "He's Kiel Gnomenfoot, the greatest hero of all time!"

"Yeah, I'm Kiel Gnomenfoot," the boy magician said, giving Owen a grateful look. He looked back at the man. "I bet you've never read the books. What a shame. You really missed out on the best experience of your life."

"I doubt that," the man said, earning a snort from Charm.

"Um, excuse me, ma'am and sir," Gwen said politely, peering over Owen's shoulder. "Where is the candy?"

The woman started to hand the large bowl of candy towards them. "It's—"

Charm aimed one of her ray guns at the strangers, mere inches from their faces. "If you don't hand the candy over this instant, I won't hesitate to shoot."

The woman laughed awkwardly. "That's . . . that's not real, is it?"

"Try me."

"Whoa, okay!" Owen shouted, pulling Charm away. "Sorry, we really would like some candy! That's all we want!"

"Yeah," Bethany added, shooting Charm a look. She stepped forward, dove her hand into the bowl and grabbed a Reese's. She placed it into a plastic bag, which she'd kept hidden in her pocket until it was time for trick or treating.

She clambered down the porch steps to get out of the others' way. A few seconds later, Gwen joined her. She was staring at the piece of candy she'd received in awe, as if it were something fragile. "I've never seen anything like this, not in the whole galaxy! Does all of Earth have this candy?"

"Yes," Bethany said, smiling. She gestured at the wrapped candy in Gwen's palm. "Go on, you should try it."

Gwen scrunched her eyebrows. "It won't kill me since I'm not from your time period, right?"

She shook her head. "Nope. You'll be fine."

Gwen hesitantly unwrapped the candy, then placed it in her mouth. She chewed for a few seconds, then swallowed. A huge grin blossomed on her face. "Oh my goodness! I love Earth candy!"

Bethany laughed. "I knew you'd like it."

Charm walked up beside them, holding the candy gingerly in her hand. "Yeah, I think I'll pass."

"You don't want it?"

"No. I just don't really . . . trust this." She handed Bethany the candy. "Here. I think you want it more. Now take it before I regret anything."

Trying to hide her surprise, Bethany quickly took the candy and slid it into her bag. "That was actually . . . nice of you."

"See, Charm?" Gwen said. "I knew there was some good in you!"

"I said, don't make me regret this!" Charm warned.

After a few seconds longer of waiting, Owen slid up next to Bethany, followed by Kara, Kiel, and Orion. He clapped his hands together. "Next house! Let's go before it gets too dark."

He broke off into a light jog in the direction of the next house, which forced the others to race after him in order to catch up.

"It's not even that dark out yet," Kara said, glancing up at the sky. "The sun just set."

"Owen is really big on Halloween," Bethany said. "He doesn't have a concept of reality when he's excited."

Kiel grinned. "Sounds like him."

"This is so much fun!" Gwen exclaimed once they caught up with Owen, a bright smile on her face. "How long are we doing this for?"

"Until we have too much candy to hold," Owen said with a light laugh. "Which I doubt will happen, because we all can hold ten bags of candy each, right?"

Kara shrugged. "Maybe?"

"I certainly can," Charm said, motioning to her super-strong robotic arm. "I'm strong enough, but I doubt any of you weaklings are."

"I'm not a weakling," Orion said.

Bethany nudged him in the shoulder. "You totally are. Dad says so."

"He was just trying to make himself look cool. We all know who's the strongest Twilight."

"Yeah, we do," Bethany joked, tossing her hair behind her. "I am."

Orion snorted, shaking his head in disbelief. She turned her head to see Kiel giving her a wink. "Yeah, Beth. You are."

Bethany smiled, a warm feeling blossoming in her chest. He smiled back.

The group fell into silence as they went to the next house, the only thing mostly audible being the crunching of the leaves under their feet. They traveled onto the house's driveway and up to their door. As they got close, Bethany could see that the lights weren't on inside. Clearly, no one wanted to be bothered at this time of night. She didn't blame them.

"Hey, I think there's no one here," Bethany said loudly, causing the group to stop in their tracks

"There isn't?" Kara asked, tilting her head to look at the windows. "It does look pretty dark in there."

"Let's go to the next house, then," Charm said, looking bored and ready to leave.

Without warning, Owen suddenly darted towards the front door. Bethany's eyes widened, and she reached out for him. "Owen! What are you—"

"Guys!" he shouted, peering into what looked like a cardboard box next to the person's door. "I found the full sized candy bars!"

"Sweet!" Kiel said, racing up the steps and joining Owen. He knelt down and grabbed a handful of huge candy bars. He stuffed it into a bag that Owen had given him to borrow.

The rest of the group walked towards the box, each grabbing their fill. Bethany felt bad about taking too much, so she hadn't grabbed nearly as many as Kiel or Gwen or Owen had. Even still, she made sure to grab a few of her dad's favorite bars.

"Come on, time for the next stop!" Owen yelled, frantically waving for them all to follow as he took off down the block to the next house.

"What have I gotten myself into?" Orion mumbled, his eyebrows raised as he watched the boy dressed as Spider-Man run away into the darkness.

"Yay!" Gwen exclaimed. She hurried after Owen, clearly ready to get more candy.

"Why does he need to run?" Charm groaned, starting to trudge forward.

Kiel snorted. "Because that's him. He's super excited about the candy. The first time I tried it, I couldn't stop eating it! It tastes better than anything The Magister made with magic!"

Bethany shook her head with a laugh, then took off at a run, her friends following close behind. They raced through the chilly night air, panting as they tried keeping up with Owen. A full moon rose in the sky, illuminating the street in front of them and giving the night an extra spooky vibe to it. All in all, it was the perfect Halloween.


End file.
